Miami Marlins: Spotlight on Zack Leban

The Miami Marlins concentrated on making the system stronger in their bid to #Re2pectTheProcess in the 2018 draft.

Baseball operations CEO Derek Jeter explained that their strategy wasn’t to pick high school or college players specifically. Instead, he was set on procuring the best available athlete with each pick for the Miami Marlins. That brings us to their 12th round selection, Zack Leban.

12th Round: Zack Leban, right-handed pitcher

Leban is a 6’3″, 245 lb. pitcher from Bellevue, Washington, and half of a matched set. Born on May 30th, 1996 along with twin brother Greg. Zack played three seasons of collegiate Division I ball with the University of Kansas. Greg was 1-2 with a 9.50 ERA with Austin Peay University over 18 innings. He struck out 19 batters, but walked 25.

As a Jayhawk, Zack was 8-7 over 66 appearances in total, 64 of those as a reliever. He struck out 81 in 96 1/3 innings, with a 1.43 WHIP and a 4.73 ERA.

Miranda Clark – Ulrich/KANSAN

This season, Leban, who was a junior, was 4-3 with a 4.62 ERA, with 12 saves and 36 strikeouts in 39 innings. On May 24th, he was ruled out for the remainder of the NCAA season due to academic ineligibility.

When asked, Zack had this to say to the Miami Marlins fanbase:

"I’m really excited to get to work, and honored to be drafted by such a great organization!"

History

Of the 54 players drafted with the 357th overall selection, seven have reached the major leagues. Darin Erstad (1992, 32.4 career WAR) was a two-time all star and led the majors with 240 hits in 2000. Erstad slashed .282/.336/.407 over 1,654 games. Bob Horner (1975, 21.9) slashed .277/.340/.499 in 1,020 games over 10 major league seasons. He hit 218 career homers. Jim Slaton (1969, 17.3) went 151-158 with a 4.03 ERA and a 1.407 WHIP, with 1191 strikeouts in 2683 2/3 innings.

More from Marlins Draft

• Miami Marlins draft retrospective: 2003
• Miami Marlins draft retrospective: 2002
• Meet the 2022 Miami Marlins Draft Picks
• Miami Marlins draft preview: Brooks Lee
• Miami Marlins draft preview: Jackson Holliday

University of Kansas

Along with Leban, Jackson Goddard (RHP) was picked in the third round and Devin Foyle (OF) was chosen in the 21st round out of Kansas. 107 players have been picked out of the school since 1965. The most prolific was first baseman Steve Renko, out of the 24th round in 1965. Renko was picked by the New York Mets, and eventually made the major leagues with the Montreal Expos in 1969. He amassed a 134-146 record in 15 major league seasons, with a 3.99 ERA.

Other Leagues

Leban also spent parts of two seasons with the Chillicothe Mudcats in the MINK League, going 2-4 with a 2.39 ERA. He struck out 62 in 60 1/3 innings, with a 1.16 WHIP. In 2017, he moonlighted with the Falmouth Commodores in the Cape Cod League, racking up an 8.49 ERA in 11 2/3 innings.

Next: Spotlight on Davis Bradshaw

Thanks for reading a little about Leban today at Marlin Maniac. Keep a tab open here for the latest developments with the Miami Marlins. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter while you’re at it. And don’t forget to subscribe to our daily newsletter.